Hillsborough sophomore Katie Gademsky picked up the win in her first meeting with Watchung Hills

Looks like I couldn’t have gone wrong no matter what game I chose to cover today as there were a bunch of close, dramatic contests, especially in the Skyland Conference Delaware Division. And while the one I covered was neither close nor dramatic, it was still an excellent game by two of the area’s elite.

Here’s what went down Tuesday:

Montgomery 6, Immaculata 5 (9 innings): Sophomore Berna McCormick hit a two-run homer to tie it in the top of the seventh, and Mackenzie Woodard scored on Kira Ferraiolo’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning, which proved to be the winner, and the Montgomery High School softball team edged Immaculata 6-5 at North Branch Park.
Immaculata led 5-2 after putting up four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, before courtesy runner Rachel Jablonowski tied it for the Cougars after swiping second base and advancing and scoring on a passed ball.
McCormick finished 3-for-5 with a double, home run, and three RBI to lead Montgomery (5-5), while Woodard went 2-for-5 with two runs.
Josie Novak went 2-for-4 with an RBI and Megan Colline doubled, drove in two runs, and scored two runs for the Spartans (2-7).ANALYSIS:Montgomery keeps proving its No. 4 seed in the Somerset County Tournament was well deserved as the Cougars knock off another tough opponent. McCormick, who burst onto the scene as a freshman last season hitting .304 with two doubles, two triples and two homers last season, has joined some talented upperclassmen, and things seem to be coming together nicely. Looking forward to watching the rise continue.
As for Immaculata, I think it’s officially time to be concerned. The Spartans had a lot higher hopes for this season, and while there’s nothing wrong to losing to teams like Hillsborough, North Hunterdon and Watchung Hills, a true powerhouse is going to need to beat one of those teams every now and then. More importantly, there are also a couple of bad losses on the Immaculata slate, teams it shouldn’t be losing to. The Spartans are a veteran group and they are going to need to come together as one unit and make a decision as to whether they want to be serious contenders. There is no question they have the talent. It wasn’t that long ago the Spartans were a legitimate powerhouse and county champs. No reason that can’t happen again.

Hillsborough 9, Watchung Hills 2: Katie Gademsky allowed two runs on four hits, walked three and struck out two, and Alyssa Vanderveer smacked two homers and drove in six runs to power Hillsborough.
I covered this one, CLICK HERE for the game story.ANALYSIS:Despite the final score, this was actually a very good game for four-plus innings, before VanDerveer started cranking ‘em out. But Hillsborough’s offensive prowess is well documented. And I’ve written plenty already about sophomore Katie Gademsky, who is really adapting nicely as a first-year ace. The kid was bringing it Tuesday, so there’s no question she has the stuff, but she also did a great job making use of the leather behind her, which is a the real sign of a great pitcher. And that defense, which has not gotten enough credit through the years, was on display Thursday, especially on the infield, where second baseman Rachel Handel continues to impress me every time I see her play (she made a great play in the North Hunterdon game I saw, too), and Taryn Grober showed it’s not just her bat that’s come alive in her first full season as a starter. The junior and third-year varsity performer, plays third and center field for Raiders, and has been one of the breakout players of 2014. Hillsborough seems to have one or two every year. Last year it was Donna Conrad. Alyssa VanDerveer two years ago. The list goes on. With an ace in place and an offense and defense that has ALMOST made up for the graduation of Alexis Pezza and Alison Shimko, Hillsborough is still every bit the elite club it has been for the past decade-plus.
As for our friends from Watchung Hills, what can you say? The Warriors didn’t expect to go undefeated in this area. That would be absurd. These teams will meet again. Probably more than once.
More on Watchung Hills in Thursday’s weekly notebook.

Hunterdon Central 8, Bridgewater-Raritan 5: Hayley Fico hit a solo home run, Jessica McGuire went 2-for-4 with a double, RBI, and run, and Ally Hernandez doubled and drove in three runs to lead Hunterdon Central (7-5). Deanna Centi went 3-for-4 with three RBI and a run while Samantha Mitchell and Sarah Rebetje each collected two hits for Bridgewater-Raritan (5-6).ANALYSIS:This is probably the game I would have gone to if Watchung Hills and Hillsborough weren’t playing today. I got to see a tiny bit of Central on Saturday at the Red Devil Tournament and I would have liked to see how this one went down between two teams looking to get on a roll. A solid effort by the Red Devils against an up-and-coming team. Central will be at Watchung Hills on Thursday in another game that should be very telling – for both teams.

Pingry 4, Bound Brook 3: Katie Marino struck out 15, walked two, and allowed one earned run on four hits to get the win for Pingry (4-4), which scored the winning run on an error in the bottom of the seventh. Alyssa Baum went 2-for-3 for the Big Blue. Nicole Mondragon, who went 2-for-2, hit a game-tying single in the top of the seventh for Bound Brook (5-4).ANALYSIS:Great to see Pingry finally get a quality win under its belt. The Big Blue entered the game with three wins, all against struggling teams they blew out, but the Crusaders are a solid club headed in the right direction, and this was a key game for both teams.

Scotch Plains-Fanwood 7, Rahway 3: Kyra Lockhart went 2-for-4 with a double, home run, and three RBI to lead Scotch Plains-Fanwood (4-9) and Mary Coloney went 2-for-3 with a run. Cheyenne Winstead went 4-for-4 with a double and two runs scored for Rahway (9-2).ANALYSIS:I’ve been keeping an eye on Scotch Plains-Fanwood, which looks like it could be turning in the right direction after six years without a winning season. Even the Raiders’ losses have been tight.

Plainfield 21, St. Mary’s 6: Lien Lewis went 3-for-4 with three runs and Ariel Brown scored three times and picked up the victory from the circle as Plainfield won its first. Anniyan Bilal, Jaynada Spencer-Whitfield and Carlin Hall each scored three runs for the Cardinals (1-5).ANALYSIS:Congrats to the Cardinals on their first win and to first-year head coach Darren Slater on his first varsity victory.

Somerset Tech 22, New Brunswick 6: Pitcher Abby Manuel went 4-for-4 with a home run, four runs and three RBIs and notched her first varsity win to send Somerset Tech. Giannie added three hits with three runs and four RBIs for the Jags (3-3).ANALYSIS: Some moron (or morons), apparently, decided to vandalize the Jags’ field over spring break last week, carving donuts in the infield and outfield, which forced Tuesday’s game to be moved to New Brunswick. Still, Somerset Tech shook it off and snapped a two-game losing streak in convincing fashion.

Warren Hills 3, Somerville 2: Tori Triozzi went 1-for-3 with a double and RBI for Somerville (6-3) while Amanda Carisone allowed three earned runs on six hits in the loss.ANALYSIS:No shame in losing by one run after making the long trek to Washington Township. The Pioneers still control the Raritan Division with Voorhees looming next Tuesday.

About Simeon Pincus

A graduate of Kean University, Simeon Pincus has been covering NJ sports since 1997, including softball at the Courier News since 1999 and girls soccer since 2001. He began covering CN girls basketball in 2013